Happy New Year (except for the promotional product industry)! I’m happy to report that this year there will be no more “goodies” (or cheap crap from China) flowing out from the pharmaceutical companies. That means no more pens, notepads, mugs, magnets, calculators, t-shirts…you name it. According to the NYT’s article, they’ll still be giving out food with educational programs and money for consulting. And probably trips to the Bahamas. But there will be no more insidious brand names everywhere. Now the marketing tactics go underground!
Some skeptics deride the voluntary ban as a superficial measure that does nothing to curb the far larger amounts drug companies spend each year on various other efforts to influence physicians. But proponents welcome it as a step toward ending the barrage of drug brands and logos that surround, and may subliminally influence, doctors and patients.
People argue this is a silly step as these products don’t influence health care decisions. Really? You think a marketing team aided by psychologists just decided to drop billions of dollars for nothing? I’m not that naive. And I’m also really tired of having everything I see come with a brand. We are constantly bombarded by advertising, logos, and subliminal marketing. I try to keep a sharp eye out for these ploys but it’s tiring and depressing. Maybe I need to take a Zoloft?
[...] blogged recently about the end of promotional products from the pharmaceutical companies (like pens, mugs, and notepads). Clearly we need to continue [...]